Board games are a favorite form of entertainment for a wide variety of people and their popularity has been steadily increasing over the years. Many of the more popular include a playing board having a playing surface with each player moving a group of his own game pieces across the board in some manner, possibly in response to the throwing of a pair of dice. The more successful games take on a particular theme with the game pieces and playing surface reflecting the theme chosen. In some games, the movement of the game pieces fits in with the theme, which helps to bring the theme to life and enhance the playing of the game.
Accordingly, applicant has succeeded in developing and designing a board game with apparatus and a method of play which simulates an ancient form of combat utilizing spear carrying warriors, archers, shield bearers, and even a catapult. The game pieces are miniature statuettes formed into shapes resembling their identity and their mode of play. The playing surface takes on the shape of an inner fortress surrounded by a series of rings and pits one player's game pieces against the other by establishing "stations" and "barricades" to block the advance of a king to the inner fortress. Opposing game pieces may be captured by archers who camp along a ring and may shoot their arrows around the ring at opposing game pieces. Shield bearers counteract the attack of an archer and "shield" all game pieces grouped at the same game piece area. Individual battles or skirmishes take place when one group of game pieces arrives at a game piece area occupied by an equal number of the other player's game pieces. When this happens, the first player to move another of his game pieces into the battle areas so that he outnumbers the other player, wins the battle. To help in this situation, a free running scout is available which can move at will between contiguous game piece areas and does not have to follow the normal progression required of the other game pieces as they move around the rings.
An opposing player's game pieces may also be captured by a catapult which can be positioned circumferentially around the outer ring and "throw" radially inward across the rings by a number corresponding to the roll of the dice. The catapult has a much more limited range to shoot at than the archer but there is no protection from its missles.
Units of up to three game pieces may be formed and moved from game piece area to game piece area as would a single game piece. These units may land on and coalesce with other of the same player's game pieces into a "station" which serves as a waiting trap for another player's units, should they land on the station. As a unit would be outnumbered by a station, the opposing player's game pieces are immediately captured. A station therefore blocks a player's advance until he throws a proper roll on the dice to enable him to move over a station. A player can block the other player's advance even further by forming a barricade or three successive game piece areas each having three or more game pieces thereon which serves as an absolute bar on further advance by the opposing player's game pieces. A barricade instead must be attacked by the archer, catapult, or individual battles caused by moving game pieces into the barricade.
The playing surface is arranged in a series of concentric rings with one game piece area being specially designated as a starting or entry game piece area and its adjacent game piece area being designated as an advancement area from which game pieces move into the next innermost ring. Each player has his own designated game piece areas on each ring which staggers the start and advancement for each player. This helps eliminate any immediate congestion or capture as the players traverse the rings and advance radially inwardly. Captured players are moved off the board and can be re-introduced into play only by a player rolling doubles with the dice.
The object of the game is to move a designated game piece, the king, from the outer ring and through the many pitfalls set up by the opposing player on his way to the inner fortress. As the king is the last game piece which can be started into play, the opposing player has an opportunity to establish a strong defensive posture and lay in wait for the king. Alternately, a player could choose to set up minimal defenses and instead rely on his swift movement of his king onto the board before the other player establishes a defense and thereby achieve a quick victory. Of course, there are all sorts of strategies which might be successful in a particular situation, and the applicant's game lends itself to the development of these strategies. Thus, a successful player may follow a different tact depending upon the arrangement of the game pieces on the board.
As can be appreciated, applicant has developed a board game with apparatus and a method of play which fits right into the chosen theme of ancient combat. The shape of the game pieces, their movement, and the strategies help to simulate this theme and therefore provide a unique game heretofore unknown in the prior art. Applicant has given a brief overview of his game which is more completely described in the drawings and preferred embodiment which follows.